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Draconian Halberdiers
|upkeep_cost = |num_figures = |moves = |melee = |defense = |resist = |hits = |abilities = Fire Breath 1 }} Draconian Halberdiers are a type of Normal Unit. This unit may be created at a Draconian town, for the Construction Cost of . The town must already contain an Armory for this to be possible. Like all Halberdiers, Draconian Halberdiers are a main-line defensive unit, capable of holding its own in a fight with other Normal Units, especially after gaining some Experience. Draconians possess a few important racial benefits though: They have a better Defense score, a better Resistance score, can Fly at a great speed, and can even Breathe Fire. These traits normally elevate Draconian Halberdiers to a higher level of deadliness. On the other hand, Draconian Halberdiers are 150% more expensive to create than any other Halberdiers. Draconian Halberdiers require an Upkeep Cost of and to maintain. Failure to pay these costs will result in the unit being disbanded automatically. Unit Properties Physical Description Draconian Halberdiers are a group of dragon-kin, humanoids descended from dragons. They are covered in thick green scales from head to toe, they have long thin tails, reptilian heads, and two great dragon wings that enable them to fly. Draconian Halberdiers carry halberds - long poles topped with large axe blades and spikes, used either for stabbing or for hacking at enemies while fending them off. Draconians are also quite resistant to magic, and their scales provide strong protection. Draconian Halberdiers are a , containing when fully healed. Attack Properties Draconian Halberdiers use a Melee Attack that is quite strong, especially against other Normal Units. This attack is also backed up by a weak-but-useful Breath Attack. As they gain , both attacks can become strong enough to actually threaten the weaker Fantastic Units. Each Halberdier makes a Melee Attack with a strength of . With no additional bonuses, this delivers an average damage output of about , so with 6 Halberdiers attacking in unison there's a good chance that several hits will connect. This attack is dangerous to most enemy Normal Units, and can potentially wipe out a lightly-armored enemy. With additional Experience, the Draconian Halberdiers' attack can become even more threatening, to the point where this unit can damage or kill enemy low-tier Fantastic Units quite well. More importantly however, when the unit makes a voluntary Melee Attack against an enemy unit, it first executes a Fire Breath attack, with a strength of per Halberdier. This will cause only about on average, but with attacking in unison still has some chance to cause damage to a lightly-armored target. Any enemy that actually gets killed by this attack cannot deliver any Melee Damage back at the Halberdiers. Note that the Draconian Halberdiers may not use their Breath Attack when Counter Attacking. Also, because this attack delivers Fire Damage, targets possessing Magic Immunity and/or Fire Immunity will suffer no damage from it whatsoever. Defense Properties Thanks to their racial bonus, Draconian Halberdiers possess a Defense score of - providing the same amount of protection as the steel plate armor used by some of the best Normal Units of other races! They can deflect about from any damage source, on average. As with most Normal Units, each Draconian Halberdier possesses only . In other words, each point of inflicted on this unit will kill off one of its . For purposes of defending against Curses and other combat maledictions, the Draconian Halberdiers have an above-average Resistance score of . This can protect them from some ill effects, but will probably fail about as often as it succeeds. With Experience however, Draconian Halberdiers can become surprisingly resistant to a large variety of ill effects. Other Properties Like all other Draconian units, Draconian Halberdiers have the innate ability to Fly. They also move at a rather good speed of . Both abilities are essential to the proper use of all Draconian units. As Flying units, Draconian Halberdiers can easily scout and attack across Oceans. This means that no body of water is a safe barrier to hide behind when a Draconian empire is nearby. Their high flying speed also means that they can attack quickly, retreat easily, and evade enemy armies rather well. During combat, the fast Flying ability allows Draconian Halberdiers to maneuver around enemy lines with ease, and protects them from most Melee Attacks by enemy ground units. Furthermore, the high speed allows the Draconian Halberdiers to use their Breath Attack frequently, as it enables them to choose their targets carefully and decide when and where to attack. Finally, the Draconian Halberdiers's Flying ability gives them an automatic Sight Range bonus, enabling them to see two tiles away on the overland map (including diagonally). Basic Strategy Halberdiers are a step up from main-line Swordsmen units. Though Draconian Halberdiers are twice as expensive as Draconian Swordsmen, they are both stronger and more durable in Melee combat. Thus, an empire that can afford to build Draconian Halberdiers will often fill its armies with them as fodder and defensive troops, possibly even replacing the Swordsmen entirely. Furthermore, access to both fast Flight and Breath Attack capabilities make them significantly more dangerous than other Halberdiers - if used properly. During battle, Draconian Halberdiers will generally seek to make sudden charges at enemy units, attacking with both their Breath Attack and Melee Attack. When this is done voluntarily (i.e. the Draconian Halberdiers voluntarily attacking an enemy unit), the Breath Attack kicks in and may kill a few enemy , weakening the target before the exchange of Melee Damage takes place. Remember that this Breath Attack does not occur when the Draconian Halberdiers are Counter Attacking. However, Draconian Halberdiers are fast enough to withdraw after each attack in order to prevent this. Also, their Flying ability means that most ground units cannot make Melee Attacks against them in the first place, meaning that sometimes it's not even necessary to withdraw after every attack. Nonetheless, Draconian Halberdiers prefer attacking weak enemy Normal Units. The reasoning behind this is that it increases the chance for the Halberdiers's Breath Attack to kill a few enemy figures, thus reducing the damage that the Halberdiers will take during the enemy's Counter Attack. Stronger units might not be weakened at all, and their Counter Attack can rather-easily kill several of the Halberdiers. Draconian Halberdiers are often superior in combat to enemy low-tier Normal Units. Though Halberdiers are more vulnerable to Ranged Attacks than Swordsmen, and will still suffer casualties in almost any fight, they deliver a hefty amount of damage to their opponents and can occasionally wipe an enemy unit out with one attack. Draconian Halberdiers can band together with other Halberdiers or Swordsmen to take out a stronger enemy unit, up to and including low-tier Fantastic Units. Again, expect casualties among the ranks even if you do win the fight. Finally, remember that Draconian Halberdiers can fly on the overland map as well as in combat. They can make surprise raids and invasions across rough terrain or large bodies of water very easily. Use this to your advantage. Ability Overview Fire Breath 1 * Whenever this unit makes a Melee Attack against an enemy target, it also delivers a Fire Damage Breath Attack with a strength of per . * As a Breath Attack, this damage is delivered before the enemy gets the chance to retaliate. Any in the target unit that are killed by the attack do not get to deliver any Melee Damage. * This Breath Attack does not occur when the unit is Counter Attacking against an enemy assailant. * This effect does nothing against targets possessing the Magic Immunity or Fire Immunity abilities. Experience Table The following table illustrates how Draconian Halberdiers improve as they gain Experience. Any properties that are not listed here do not improve with Experience in any way. * To achieve this level, either the Warlord Retort or the Crusade spell must be in play. ** To achieve this level, both the Warlord Retort and the Crusade spell must be in play simultaneously. Average Damage Output The table below details the average amount of damage that each in a Draconian Halberdiers unit will deliver with each type of attack, based on . It can be used in comparison to the target's Defense rating to figure out the chance of hurting that target. Acquisition Draconian Halberdiers may be produced in any Draconian Town. A town must contain an Armory to be able to produce Draconian Halberdiers. Should a town lose its Armory, it can no longer produce Draconian Halberdiers until a replacement structure is built. The Construction Cost of this unit is . Draconian Halberdiers may appear for hire as Mercenaries. They may already have some Experience on being hired, and several units may be hired simultaneously. Hiring these units requires a certain cost in that depends on many different factors. Draconian Halberdier Mercenaries have the same Upkeep Cost as a normally-constructed unit. Category:Units Category:Normal Units Category:Draconians Category:Halberdiers